Originally Posted by
jabrams72
And the UK/Europe have gone entirely to Chip and Pin, rather than signature.
Correct, but those are not "PIN-based" transactions in the sense of the debit cards here in the USA. The main difference here is the amount that the banks collect on the transaction. On a typical CC transaction the amount the bank makes is WAY higher. So they like and reward those. On a debit/PIN transaction the banks make a LOT less and so you don't get as rich of rewards.
Originally Posted by
jackal
Until recently, I always specifically asked for a PIN-only debit card (or purposefully did not activate the credit half of a signature debit card) in order to avoid the problems encountered if/when the card gets compromised. (Debit cards are legally afforded the same fraud protections as credit cards [except that most credit cards extend it from $50 to $0, whereas I'm not sure most debit cards do the same], but it can get really inconvenient to be out the actual money during the process.) As long as I was extremely careful about my PIN, I always felt safer using my PIN.
Most banks will still issue a true ATM card rather than a debit card if you ask. At least I've been successful.